Alliance member AEMRN delivers healthcare to remote villages in Lusaka and Kenya, through its summer mobile clinics

A combined team of local and international participants of doctor, nurses, scientists signed up for AEMRN's Mobile Clinics and served communities in Lusaka and Kenya, over the summer months. Volunteers with medical and other needed experience operated the mobile clinics under the guidance from local health care providers, national and international health officials, and AEMRN leadership.

The Afro-European Medical and Research Network (AEMRN) is a non-governmental and not-for-profit -organization, working with a strong vision of partnerships to improve quality of life, especially the health of people living in resource-limited settings. The AEMRN network brings together active professionals in education, medicine, engineering, nursing, and medical logistics to work together in supporting people in need. One of AEMRN activities includes running of special mobile clinics.

The concept of medical work camps with mobile clinics involves health professionals physically going down to communities and providing support and health services. The mobile clinic teaches, promotes healthy lifestyle, and treats. It provides an opportunity to bring much needed medical care to hard-to reach regions and further act as an entry point for delivering specialized services or for training and promotion as well as an excellent platform for South-South, North-South and North-North collaboration.

Lusaka, Zambia from 22nd to 27th July 2012

A team of 18 local and international participants of doctor, nurse’s and scientists ran mobile clinics in the towns and villages around Lusaka. 2150 patients including women, children, the aged etc. with various ailments such as respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and neurological cases as well as HIV/AIDS, malaria and minor injuries, came to consult at the clinics. Major cases were referred to the tertiary hospitals or bigger health facilities for follow-up or further management. AEMRNs mobile clinics covered the areas on the outskirts of Lusaka, including Kasungula district.

One day was dedicated to Continuous Medical Education (CME) and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) facilitated by the WHO. There 153 participants in attendance, who came from the, Ministry of Health Lusaka, Medical and nursing students from University of Teaching Hospital (UTH), Lusaka, Chreso University as well as other Government departments and Private Practitioners. Training was on: “WHO Global Influenza Program (GIP); Critical Care Training and the Integrated Management for Adolescent and Adult Illness (IMAI); Quick Check and Management of Severe Illness in resource limited settings”. The training programme was chaired by the Vice-Chancellor of the Chreso University presided upon by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health Zambia. In between the presentation were role plays from the audience as well as Community Health Workers from the Chreso University and our International and national AEMRN participants.

Kenya from 29th July to 8th August 2012

Mobile clinics were set up close to Kitale, in Kenya, which served as a central point for other surrounding villages to converge and receive health promotion messages, take part in community based studies as well treatment of common ailments.. The towns and villages covered were, Kisumu area, Kaptanai (close to the Ugandan border) and Matisi . 4,100 patients were received by the clinic, over a seven day period.

Like in Lusaka, one full day was dedicated to Continuous Medical Education (CME) and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for all stakeholders in the area of Health Promotion together with the Geneva based Alliance for Health Promotion. There were about 137 participants from the local Government, village chiefs, and religious elders, Ministry of Health and healthcare workers including doctors and nurses, nursing midwives and scientist from South Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Switzerland, USA, Sierra Leone as well as NGOs such as the African Medical Research Foundation (AMREF). At break-out sessions, participants were divided into three groups to discuss: From the Grassroots: What should be on the global agenda? How we communicate? How to get community voices to the global level?“. The reports from the three groups were presented and discuss in the plenary session and will form the basis of further discussion at the Health Promotion Forum, Geneva, 19-20 Nov.2012, the annual WHO World Health Assembly 2013 briefing session as well as the Global Conference on Health Promotion in Helsinki in June 2013.